REVIEW: Maltesers

If you live in England or some other countries, you might be asking yourself, “Why is The Impulsive Buy reviewing Maltesers?” Presumably you’re asking yourself this question with an accent that those of us who live in the United States find utterly charming.

Well, my far-off friends, us Americans have just been gifted with the arrival of Maltesers, having had to settle for Whoppers to soothe our chocolate and malt-craving sweet tooth during movie viewings. Unless you’d prefer Raisinets, in which case, go sit in another aisle.

It’s impossible to eat these Maltesers without comparing them to Whoppers, so I just went ahead and did that.

First off, Maltesers, a name that gets weirder every time I type it, are made by the Mars Co. I was surprised to find “Made in Great Britain” on the package. Mars isn’t making them in the US, they’re just importing them here now. Whoppers are produced by Hershey’s, the great rival to Mars.

As you can see, Whoppers are smaller and have a matte finish, while Maltesers are quite a bit larger and have a shiny, waxy finish to them.

While Maltesers are bigger on the outside, they are decidedly less dense than Whoppers on the inside. Having been a Whopper consumer all my life, eating a mouthful for the purposes of comparison was a familiar sensation – weak chocolate flavor and a texture that briefly feels like it’s going to break your teeth before the inside breaks apart, gumming up but giving you that strong malt flavor.

Despite both being chocolate-covered malted milk treats, Maltesers are basically the opposite. I popped a few in my mouth and there was little resistance when I chomped down – these candies are just as light and airy as they look. And, like their texture, the malt flavor is also light and airy.

The inside dissolves quickly, leaving you with more of a chocolate taste than anything. But, because this is chocolate made in Great Britain, the quality of it is much higher than that of Whoppers.

So, now you’ve got two malted milk chocolate candy options. Which one you choose is really up to you. I loved the light inner texture of Maltesers and the quality of the chocolate, but they were pretty light on the malt flavor, due to the filling dissolving so quickly. But it’s that airiness that makes them so poppable.

When it comes down to it, Maltesers is simply a higher-quality product than Whoppers. It’s got good chocolate and a great texture, although it is light on the malt flavor. But, despite the name, the package doesn’t really play up the maltiness of the candy – it calls them “chocolatey candies” and their trademark is “playful crunch, chocolately delight.” So if that was the goal, Maltesers has delivered hands-down. I blew threw this single-serve bag in an alarmingly short amount of time. They’re dangerously good.

I’ll leave you with a fun fact from Wikipedia: “In the 1930s, advertisements claimed that the Maltesers honeycomb centre is seven times less fattening than ordinary chocolate centres; this led marketers to claim it was beneficial for weight loss.”

Cocaine used to be advertised for weight loss, too! I’d argue it had better results, though. (Just kidding, kids – don’t do drugs!)

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10 thoughts to “REVIEW: Maltesers”

There is a third option as well – Necco’s Mighty Malts, although their distribution isn’t as good as Hershey’s Whoppers you should find them in a tetrapak carton lurking in a dusty corner of your local Rite Aid or CVS.

So if we’re to believe Wikipedia, they ARE different recipes. However, since my pack said “Made in Great Britain”, it makes me wonder. Wish I’d kept the package so I could see if it had the US ingredients or the UK ones!

Ah well… next time you see them, swipe a quick photo of the ingredients so you can satisfy your own curiosity!

I think it’d also be interesting for someone to get a pack of properly British Maltesers (britishcornershop.co.uk do deliver to the USA as I’ve sent a friend gifts of food through them before) and compare them, in the same way this Whopper vs Maltesers post was done. Which I thoroughly enjoyed, by the way. Thanks Kelley! 🙂

These makes great ice cream toppings. Best of all, you can find them at Costco now! Yes way! A bucket full of Maltesers. All you can eat for $8.59ish. You can even reuse the bucket just in time for easter egg hunting. Too-da-loo

I was born in England, and raised in Australia, then moved to the US as an adult. I have been a Malteser-aholic since I was a child. I missed Maltesers a lot when I moved to the US, I tried Whoppers a few times, but they no where near measured up to Maltesers, and ended up in the trash. I paid the high price at import shops to enjoy them a few times a year.

When they were released in the US at a dollar a bag, I was truly in heaven. Upon first tasting the US version, I was a tad disappointed that the chocolate wasn’t as melt in your mouth as I was used to. I’ve adapted to the taste since then, because the benefit of having them whenever I want them, makes up for that lack of creamier chocolate.